Marshalls Funeral Home provides dignified cremation options to meet the unique needs of each family. Though not a complete list of the cremation services we provide, the following are among the options available:
Choices in Cremation:
The Process
Cremation is a process of subjecting the body to intense heat and flame, approximately 1600 to 2000 degrees fahrenheit, until it has been almost totally consumed.
Unless they have been embalmed, the remains are kept refrigerated until cremation. Common sense, dignity and health concerns require that the remains be placed in an opaque, rigid container. This can range from a specially-designed corrugated cardboard box to a wooden casket, depending on preference. Since the container is consumed in the cremation process, it cannot be made of non-flammable substances or materials which give off toxic fumes on burning.
The remains, in their container, are placed in the cremation chamber and subjected to intense gas flame. It usually takes 45-60 minutes for the remains to be consumed, and for safety reasons the chamber is cooled for several hours before opening.
At the end of the process the remains are swept from the chamber. While sweeping is done with great care, small quantities of the remains may be left behind in the chamber and small quantities from previous cremations may be mingled with the current remains. Any remaining metal parts of the cremation container, metal medical prostheses or other foreign objects are removed. This leaves about 6 to 8 pounds of bone fragments, which are mechanically reduced to a volume of about 200 cubic inches and the texture of coarse beach sand.
Following mechanical processing the cremated remains are either placed directly into the chosen memorial urn or are temporarily stored in a non-permanent container awaiting disposition. The deceased person then may be memorialized in a columbarium, in a cemetery or in any other way the family has chosen.
A commonly asked question is, how do you know they are "your" cremated remains? Crematories are very careful about paperwork. By law and regulation the relevant papers and permissions are kept with the remains and are then clipped to the outside of the cremating unit until the process is complete. In addition, most crematories place a coded metal tag in the cremation chamber with the remains to further reduce the possibility of error. This tag is kept with the remains and placed with them into the final urn or other container.
There are four main options when cremation is chosen:
Cremation following a traditional service, which may include viewing
Cremation following a viewing only
Cremation preceding or following a memorial service or reception
Cremation when a decision has been made not to have services
Following the cremation process the remains may be:
Buried in the ground
Placed in a columbarium niche
Memorialized in other ways
Scattered
Divided with a portion being buried or placed in a niche and a portion scattered or memorialized in another way.
When remains are scattered, many people choose to have a non-traditional ceremony in memory of the deceased as part of the scattering process. Your only limitation is your imagination.
When selecting a funeral home or cemetery you may wish to base your selection on the willingness and ability of the staff to explain all your options. This is particularly true when cremation has been selected, as some firms specialize in very limited areas of the cremation process, such as only picking up the remains and doing the cremation, and will find it difficult to support you in all of your needs.
Despite the Hollywood image of scattering cremated remains by throwing up a fine powder which wafts away on the breeze, scattering is more like disposing of several pounds of dry white rice mixed with several ounces of fine powder, and which, rather than wafting away, is more likely to fall to the ground in a heap.
Although they are sometimes called "ashes", cremated remains are not ash. They consist of 6 to 8 pounds of bone fragments, which usually have been mechanically reduced to the texture of coarse beach sand and have a volume of approximately 200 cubic inches (about the size of a shoe box). This should be kept in mind when you are selecting a scattering site. You may wish to ask someone who is not a direct relative of the deceased to handle the actual scattering process because of the intense emotions that scattering sometimes brings up.
The federal government has regulations regarding the disposal of cremated remains and many local jurisdictions require notification and permits, as well as restricting the areas where remains may be scattered or otherwise disposed of. You will probably wish to confer with a cemetery or crematory for current information about those regulations.
Scattering on private property may only be done with the permission of the property owner. It has become fashionable with some people to scatter cremated remains at sites sacred to Native Americans. In many cases this is inappropriate to their traditional beliefs and is equivalent to scattering someone's remains over a church altar. Permission should be sought before disposing of remains in this way.
Cremated remains are almost pure calcium phosphate and calcium carbonate and are thus alkaline. If they are to be scattered in a garden or used in planting a tree, you will need to be sure that the plants chosen are not acid-loving or alkali-intolerant. The scattering gardens in cemeteries are designed with this in mind. If you are not sure, contact a local nursery and ask about the alkali tolerance of the plants you prefer. It is worth noting that many of the natural species in the Pacific Northwest are acid-loving plants and do not normally do well if they receive a large dose of alkali such as cremated remains.
Memorials, whether formal or informal, are a way for us to psychologically attach our visualization of the deceased to a particular place or thing. This can help us grieve, because it gives us a place to visit where we can spend quiet time remembering the departed.
Cremation memorialization can be formal or informal, or even both by dividing the remains in a process called "apportionment".
Formal memorialization can consist of:
Placing the inurned remains into a niche in a columbarium
Burying the remains in a cemetery with a memorial plaque over them
Scattering the remains in a cremation garden with a memorial plaque nearby
Scattering the remains elsewhere, but placing a plaque in a columbarium or memorial garden
Wearing or displaying a "pinch" of remains in apportionment jewelry
Informal memorialization can consist of:
Donations to a favorite charity
Planting a tree
Your chosen funeral home or cemetery should be able to advise you of the many ways you can memorialize the person who has died.
Since such a wide variety of services and merchandise are included in the charges of different funeral homes, no direct comparisons should be made without a thorough investigation. When comparing prices ask a consistent set of questions and be sure to ask about the following:
Cost of removal of the remains including any additional night/weekend/holiday charges
Temporary care costs
Cost of the cremation process itself
Cost of the cremation container
Cost of the container or urn in which cremated remains will be returned
What other costs are involved
Terms of payment
Cremated remains may be buried in a regular ground burial space, buried in an area set aside for cremated remains, or placed in a niche. Many cemeteries allow cremated remains to be placed in a burial space with the remains of a relative.
For specific cost information it is normally best to speak directly with an experienced funeral director or cemetery manager.
In a word - yes. The 1983 Code of Canon Law, in canon 1176, states: "The Church earnestly recommends that the pious custom of burying the bodies of the dead be observed; it does not, however, forbid cremation unless it has been chosen for reasons which are contrary to Christian teaching."
If cremation is chosen, the Church prefers that the body of the deceased be present during the funeral rites with cremation taking place later. However, if this not possible, a funeral may take place in a church with the cremated remains present. The remains are then to be buried with full reverence in a cemetery or entombed in a mausoleum or columbarium and, whenever possible, a plaque or stone bearing the name of the deceased should mark the site.
The Church does not approve of scattering remains, as it does not believe that scattering meets the requirements of reverent disposition.
Ecclesiastical law prohibits burying cadavers in churches, and canon 1205 S2 includes bones or ashes in its definition of cadaver. Thus parish churches are prohibited from having a columbarium. However, many cemeteries have them and are pleased to assist members of the Catholic Church to meet Church law with reverent placement and appropriate memorialization.
